Pattern mechanism for knitting machines



Dec.- 20, 1932. PAGE 1,891,270

PATTERN MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Original Filed Jan. 5, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l Dc. 20, 1932. P 1,891,270

PATTERN MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Original Filed Jan. 5, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I? 290V -aaa 260 22 i J 70 wzaerzzf .6

Patented Dec. 20, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ALBERT E. PAGE, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO SCOTT 85 WILLIAMS, INGOR- v PORATED, OF NEW' YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS PATTERN MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Application filed January 5, 1931, Serial No. 506,609. Renewed December 7, 1931.

This invention relates to automatic knitting machines, and is concerned with devices for patterning motions of knitting instruments, including means for accurately transmitting motions from pattern surfaces to the things required to be operated by them, and especially to instruments necessarily subjected to movement in relation to the remainder of the machine. 7

One object of the invention is to provide for the motions of a cam selector finger or the like with suflicient accuracy to discriminate between closely spaced lugs, projections or specially formed faces of instruments which are required to be selectively operated, and especially of such instruments as are required also to be moved, as an incident of the operation of the machine, into difierent operating planes. For example, it is well known in the art of machine knitting automatically to determine and vary the length of stitch knit by knitting needles by moving the carrier for the needles (or instruments operating in and movable with the carrier) in relation to the operative stroke of the needles; it is also well known in the art to interfere with the operation of knocking-over instruments, sinkers, or web holders for the purpose of affecting the stitches made by needles adjacent to them; for instance, to determine a special stroke or special degree or time of advance of knocking-over instruments, web holders or sinker-s at the verge of the needle carrier in relation to yarns fed for plating, to afl'ect the arrangement, or effect difierent arrangements, of the yarn in the threats of the needles.

In order to form a pattern by the aid of movable instruments cooperating with the needles, it is necessary to determine a selection of these instruments. When, in a preferred instance, the web holders are the instrumentsinterfered with for this purpose, and they are provided with steps, butts or projections at several different levels, for the purpose of discriminating among the diiierent web holders by a relatively fixed cam, the exigencies of space in the machines are such as to require accurate positioning of the instrument for operating on the web holder in respect to the series of web holders, or other knocking-over instruments, which instruments are so small as to provide little room for accessible diflerentiated stepped edges or lugs. Another object of my invention therefore is to provide for the accurate motion of a cam for selection in respect to a series of instruments carried by the needle carrier in a knitting machine, and particularly to provide for relative motion for selection between the said instruments and the said cam or finger which shall be accurate, whatever may be the adjusted position or adjustment motions of the needle carrier for other operative purposes of the machine.

The invention will now be explained by the aid of a specific instance of application of my new device to machines of the well known Scott & Williams type made under the Bobert 1V. Scott Patents No. 1,282,958, dated Ootober 29, 1918; No. 1,641,101, dated August 1927; No. 1,189,220, dated June 27, 1916; and No. 1,236,770, dated August 14, 1917.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a left-side elevation of so much of one of said machines as is necessary to explain the invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail plan above the web holder cam cap;

Fig. 3 is a typical detail radial section at the verge of the needle cylinder; and

Fig. 4 is a diagram in plan showing one relation of yarn feed, normal web holder motions, and patterning web holder motions.

The machine to which the invention is applied as shown in the drawings may C0111- prise any usual needle carrier 260, in the instance shown mounted for axial, rotatory and reciprocatory movements in respect to a bed plate D on a hearing at the top of a column 280. The machine may have the usual means for driving the cylinder 260 from the bevel gear 31 on a main shaft 32. Cylinder 260 may carry the usual web holder bed 295 for web holders 290, which are normally actuated by a web holder cam cap 300 held against rotation with the cylinder 260 and bed 295 by the usual means. The machine may have any suitable cylinder needle latch guard ring 550, and any desired means for feeding yarn in proper relation to the needles, including means to feed at least two yarns in normal plating relation to each other.

The column 280 may as usual be adapted to be vertically moved with respect to the remainder of the machine, for the purpose of changing the elevation of the needle carrier 260and its attachments in relation to cams carried by a ring on the bed plate D, not shown, and hence altering the stitch-lengtl according to the said Scott Patent No. 1,189,- 220. Alteration of the stitch-length may be pattern controlled in respect to carrying out this function at particular parts 0' the article according to the said patents; as shown herein the operation is performed by the twoarmed lever 281 on a fixed stud 150 reacting with a lug 286 on the column 280 to position the column and needle cylinder in a vertical sense. One arm of the lever 281 takes against a ring of cams ona pattern drum 120 geared to a main pattern shaft 80, racking motion of which occurs from time to time as a consequence of indications on a primary pattern surface, shown as the chain 60, on sprocket continually driven by a ratchet 62, all as well known and shown in said patents.

The machine may also comprise an auxiliary pattern surface shown a drum 71C mounted on a shaft 711 and driven according to said Scott Patent No. 1,236,770 or the device of my application Serial No. 389,183, filed August 29, 1929, by a suitably controlled ratchet mechanism, not shown, actuation of which may be predetern'iined as in said patent by indications carried on the primary pattern surface 60, and suitable connections.

Referring now to Fig. 3, in order'to discriminate among the web holders 290, for example in order to cause selected members of the series 290 to be moved inwardly to an abnormal extent, or at an abnormal time in relation to the yarns fed and the depression of the needles by a stitch cam; or in order to provide for abnormally positioning selected members of the series of web holders 290 in an abnormal forward position during or prior to their actuation, the web holders may be provided with a series of selector butts w adapted to react with the cam finger Q01 on radially placed bar Q02 mounted for vertical motion in respect to a standard having a pin 11 adapted to take into a hole in the bar w The bar 10 and cam finger 10 are vertically moved to encounter one or the other series of the butts 10 according to the pattern to be knit. Referring to Fi 1, when one of the butts w is encountered by cam finger 10 the web holder is advanced, whereas normally operated web holder butts travel at line as, m in relation to the needles 12 The finger 10 may operate anywhere between the usual wave of withdrawal by cams in cap 300 and the place of feeding the yarns 3/. As shown, it is placed between the yarn feed throat F and the advancing phases of the needles n at the stitch cam for circular knitting, not shown.

For rigidity the bar '20" may be mounted on a block 12 fastened at the top to a vertical rod 13 passing through a bore in :1 lug 14 of the standard 10. Preferably the bar is provided with a reinforcing piece 15 mount ed on the block 12 by screws 16. Bar 13 may also have a bearing in a hole in a lug 17 of the standard 10 projecting over the edge of the bed plate D. Beneath the lug 17 a compression spring 18 reacting against a collar 19 resists upward motion of the rod 13 and bar 20 Preferably pattern motions of the bar 102 and finger 10 are derived from the auxiliary pattern surface constituted of the cams 712, of different heights corresponding to the number of differently placed butts 10, carried by the auxiliary pattern drum 710. As usual, the cam surface of the drum 710 transmits its indications to a depending indicator lever 800 rocking on a fixed stud 718. Lever 800 may have an arm 801 carrying an adjustable follower 802 for a cam formed on the end of the main pattern surface or drum 120, as shown at 803; this cam ring may normally hold the structure 800, 801, 803 upwardly out of position for contact with any part of the cam indications on the surface 712, but in the position shown in Fig; 1 gaps in the cam ring 803 permit the lever 800 to swing its follower nose 805 into contact with the ring of cams 712. This occurs whenever pattern indications are to be transmitted to the selector cam finger w T 1e cam finger w is required to be positioned in respect to the lugs w on the web holders 290 to react with one or the other superposed series in like position of the numerous butts w, shown as in series five in number, any one or more of which butts may be sheared off in order to cause the web holder having a removed butt not to be affected to move out of path :0, Fig. 4, when the finger w is at any particular height. But this height is in respect to the web holders, which partake of the up and down motion of their bed 295 and the needle cylinder 260. It is therefore required, since the vertical position of column 280 and needle cylinder 260 may vary more than the distance separating the web holder butts, to provide for transmitting the indications of the pattern surface 710, 712 to the bar 10 and finger 10 in such a way as to compensate for changes in the vertical position, within the necessary limits, of the series of web holders.

One preferred way of doing this is to pro vide that the motion transmitted by the lever 800 shall have the same effect whatever the vertical position of the web holders, or what ever part is desired to be operated by the selector cam moved by the transmitting connections. As shown, there may be provided on the column 280 a fixed pivot 25 for a bell crank lever having a vertical arm 26 connected by a substantially horizontal link 130 to a pin 131 on the lever 800; and having a substantially horizontal arm 27 connected by the link 28 to the collar 19 of the rod 13. Preferably, as shown, the connection of the link 28 with the collar 19 is adjustable by the eccentric disk 13:2, the end of the link being slotted at 133 and loosely held on the collar 19 by a screw 1.34.

It will be observed that the position of the center 718 for the arm 800 is such as to translate cam motions of the nose 805 into substantially horizontal motions of the link 130, whatever the change in position of the column 280, whereas vertical motion of the pivot 25 with the column 280 is transmitted through arm 27 of lever 26, 27, the link 28 and rod 13 to the bar 10 which, with the cam finger e0 moves vertically in consonance with the motion of the column 280 and the needle cylinder 260. Therefore, whatever the measured heights of the cams 712, the finger 10 will be moved accordingly, whether or not the web holders are at any one of their operative heights. Horizontal movement of link 130 as produced by the pattern cams 712 thus varies the angle between the parts 27 and 28 and thereby changes the effective length of the chain of connections including the parts 27, 28 and 13 between the pivot 25 on and movable with column 280 and the bar 10 for the purpose of causing the finger to to react with butts w in different planes in relation to the cylinder verge, whatever the position of column 280 and cylinder 260.

I claim:

1. Knitting machine having therein in combination means for knitting including needles and a series of cooperative instrumeiv talities adapted to be shifted in relation to the needles for a variation of the effect of the needles on the knit fabric being made,

movable cam means reacting with said in-.

strumentalities severally for operating upon them selectively to vary their cooperation with the needles, a pattern device, and connections from the pattern device to said cam, means for selectively positioning the latter, said connections being mounted independent ly of the pattern device and operative to compensate for axial adjustment of the needle carrier, the connections comp-rising a part actuable by the pattern device and movable in a path substantially perpendicular to the direction in which said series of instrumentalities are shifted.

being made, movable cam means reacting with said instrumentalities severally for operating upon them selectively to vary their cooperation with the needles, a pattern device, connections interposed between the pattern device and the cam and acting to position the cam selectively in response to in dications of the pattern device, said connections being mounted independent of the pattern device and operative to compensate for longitudinal movement of the needle carrier,

said connections comprising a lever, and a fulcrum for the lever arranged to partake of the longitudinal movement of the needle carrier.

3. Knitting machine having therein, in combination, means for knitting including a needle carrier and a series of knocking-over instruments at the carrier-verge adapted to be shifted longitudinally simultaneously in relation to the needles by motions of the needle carrier in respect to the needles, movable cam means reacting with said knocking-over instruments severally for positioning them selectively to vary their cooperation with the needles. means for moving the needle carrier and knocking-over instruments longitudinally of the needles, a pattern device, connections interposed between the pattern device and the cam and acting to position the cam selectively in response to indications of the pattern device, said connections being operative to compensate for longitudinal movement of the needle carrier, the connections comprising a lever arm, a link disposed at an angle to said arm, and an element actuated by the pattern device to swing the lever and thereby change the angular relation of the link and lever.

4. Knitting machine having therein knitting devices and a series of instruments subject to alteration of position in respect to the remainder of the machine as an incident of normal operation, means for adjusting the position of said series of instruments, means for performing a selection among said instruments for a special function including a cam adapted to be positioned in one or another position according to a selection to be made; in combination with means including a link for moving said cam concomitantly with the positioning movements of said instruments, a pattern surface and means for advancing said surface at predetermined times, an indicator adapted to be moved by the pattern surface, and means for transmitting motions of said indicator to said link in any of the positions of said link and cam, said mot-ion transmitting means comprising a part movable in a path substantially perpendicular to the direction of adjustment of said series of instruments.

5. In a knitting machine having a needle carrier, a web holder bed and a series of web holders adapted to be raised and lowered to alter the stitch length, a web holder selecting cam, a pattern surface, means independent of the pattern surface operatiy e to raise and lower said cam concomitantly with motions of the needle carrier, and further means, responsive to indications of said pattern sun face, for shifting said raising and lowering means whereby to cause selective motions of said selecting cam in respect to the series of web holders and their carrier.

6. In a knitting machine a needle carrier and needles movable therein, knocking-over instruments having selector butts mounted on said carrier for freedom of motion crosswise of the needles, and a selecting cam for the knocking-over instruments adapted to be moved in the direction of motion of the needles in their carrier for selection of different instruments for motion in respect to the nee dles; means for adjusting the needle carrier, knocking-over instruments and selecting cam together longitudinally of the needles, for alterations of stitch length; in combination with a pattern surface, and a transmitting link movable in a path substantially perpendicular to the path of adjustment of the needle carrier for reacting with the selector cam adjusting means to move the cam to diiferent positions relatively to the knocking-over instruments to obtain different selections among the latter.

7. In a knitting machine having a frame and bed-plate and a needle-cylinder adapted for vertical motion in respect to said bedplate for alteration of stitch length, a series of knockingever instruments carried by the needle cylinder, said instruments having differentiated operating butts, a cam for actuating said instruments selectively in accord ance with its vertical position in relation to the needle cylinder, in combination with means for mounting said cam 011 the bedplate for vertical freedom of motion; a column supporting the needle cylinder, means operated by a movable main pattern surface for lifting and lowering the column; a bell crank lever having horizontal and vertical arms pivoted on said column, and a link between said horizontal arm and cam; an indi cater device having horizontal freedom of motion, a substantially horizontal link between said vertical arm and said indicator device: an auxiliary pattern surface in con tact with said indicator device; and means to advance said auxiliary pattern surface from time to time whereby said cam is independently positioned according to the indications of each of said pattern surfaces to work selected knocking-over instruments.

8. A knitting machine having a needle carrier and a cam for selecting knitting instrumentalities in said carrier, in combination with pattern means for the selecting movements of said cam, said carrier having a movement relatively to said pattern means and axial of itself, and a connection transmitting the selections of the pattern means to the cam with compensation for the axial movement of the carrier.

9. A knitting machine having pattern selecting means, a needle carrier with movement relative to said pattern means and axial of itself, and a cam for selecting knitting instrumentalities in said carrier, in combina tion with connections from said pattern selecting means to said cam having means to compensate for the axial movement of the carrier.

10. In a knitting machine having a circular instrumentcarrier and means for adjusting it in an axial direction, a knitting instrument movably mounted in said car'ier, said instrument having a plurality of selecting butts disposed serially in a direction parallel to the axis of the carrier, a selector movable into engagement with any predetermined one of said butts, a pattern device fixed in space as respects axial movement of the carrier, and transmitting means operative to position the selector in operative relation to a selected instrument butt in accordance with an indication of the pattern device, said transmitting means comprising a part which partakes of the movement of the carrier and being constructed and arranged to compensate for movement of the carrier so that operation of the selector means is substantially unaffected thereby.

11. In a knitting machine having a. movable carrier for knitting instrumentalities, a knitting instrumentality movably mounted in said carrier, said instrumentality having a plurality of selecting butts, means for mov ing the carrier lengthwise of said series of selecting butts, aselector device movable into engagement with any predetermined butt of said instrumentality, pattern means fixed in space as respects movements of said instrunent carrier, and means for transmitting motion from the pattern means to the selector device, said transmitting means being operative to compensate for adjustments of the carrier so that operation of the selector device in response to pattern indications is substanially unaffected by such adjustment of the carrier.

12. A knitting machine having a movable needle carrier, knitting instrumentalities movable with the carrier, and a movable cam for selectively controlling said knitting instrumentalities, in combination with pattern means for determining the movements of the cam, means for adjusting the needle carrier in a direction longitudinally of the needles and relatively to the pattern. means, and connections for transmitting selective determinations of the pattern means to the cam, said transmitting connections being operative to compensate for adjustments of the needle carrler.

13. A knitting machine having pattern means, a circular needle carrier, knitting instrumentalities movable with the carrier, means for adjusting the carrier in an axial direction and relatively to the pattern means, a cam for selecting knitting instruments, in combination with connections from the pattern means to the cam compensating for axial adjustments of the needle carrier.

14:. A knitting machine having a circular instrument carrier, a knitting instrumentality mounted on the carrier, a selector device movable axially of the carrier into any of a plurality of predetermined positions and operative to affect the action of said knitting instrumentality differently in accordance with the position of the selector device, means for adjusting the carrier axially, a pattern device fixed in space as respects said adjustment of the carrier, and means for transmitting movement of the pattern device to the selector device, said transmitting means being constructed and arranged to compensate for adjustments of the carrier.

15. In a knitting machine having a movable needle carrier and pattern-controlled means for moving it longitudinally of the needles, the combination of a cam for working instruments at the needle verge, a pattern device carried by a part of the machine which does not partake of the longitudinal movement of the needle carrier, and connections interposed between said pattern device and the cam and adapted to position the cam in accordance with selective indications of the pattern device, said connections being mounted independently of the pattern device and operative to compensate for longitudinal adjustment of the needle carrier.

16. In a knitting machine having a movable needle carrier and pattern-controlled means for moving it longitudinally of the needle, the combination of a cam for working instruments which are movable with the needle carrier, a series of instruments having differentiated operating butts in said carrier, a pattern device carried by a part of the machine which is normally fixed as respects pattern-controlled longitudinal movement of the needle carrier, and connections interposed between said pattern device and the cam and acting to position the cam in accordance with selective indications of the pattern device, said connections being mounted independently of the pattern device and operative to compensate for longitudinal adjustment of the needle carrier, said connections comprising a partwhich partakes of the longitudinal movement of the needle carrier.

17. In a knitting machine a needle carrier and needles movable therein, knocking-over instruments having selector butts mounted on said carrier for freedom of motion crosswise of the needles and a selecting cam for the knocking-over instruments adapted to be moved in the direction of mot-ion of the needles in their carrier for selecting different instruments for motion in respect to the needles, means for adjusting the needle carrier, knocking-over instruments, and the selecting cam concomitantly longitudinally of the needles for alteration of stitch length, in combination with a pattern surface mounted upon a part of the machine other than the needle carrier, connections mounted independently of the pattern surface, said connections comprising an element mounted on and partaking of the movement of the means for adjusting the needle carrier, and a part respon sive to indications of said pattern surface and operative to shift said connections whereby to alter the relation between said selecting cam and said knocking-over instruments, and means for moving said pattern surface.

18. A knitting machine having therein, in combination, a movable needle carrier, a series of instruments supported by the needle carrier, a primary pattern surface,.a main pattern surface controlled by said primary pattern surface, an auxiliary pattern surface controlled by said primary pattern surface, means for altering the level of said series of instruments in response to indications of said main pattern surface, the auxiliary pattern surface being supported by a part of the machine which does not change its position when the level of said instruments is altered, a selector cam for said instruments, and means for moving said cam in response to changes of level of said instruments, connections operated by said auxiliary pattern surface for independently changing the level of said selector cam in respect to said instruments for performing a selection among them, and means having an element moving with said main pattern surface for preventing, at times, the actuation of said connections by the auxiliary pattern surface without interruption of the normal movement of the latter.

Signed by me at Jamaica, New York, this 31st day of December, 1930.

ALBERT E. PAGE. 

